Owner Hugh Culverhouse, encouraged by recommendations from Vice President of Operations Ron Wolf and Alabama coaching legend Bear Bryant, chose John McKay, winner of four national championships with the USC Trojans, as the first Buccaneer head coach.

The team, which had won just two games in the first two years of the franchise, went to the playoffs three times in five seasons with Williams as the starter and played in the 1979 NFC Championship Game.

Instead of paying head coach Jon Gruden the raise he had earned, Raiders owner Al Davis opted to trade Gruden's rights to the Buccaneers in exchange for four draft picks and $8 million. Unfortunately for the Raiders, they would have to face Gruden and the Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII, a game the Raiders would lose 21-48.

The Buccaneers joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team along with the Seattle Seahawks.

Deemed a bust by the Buccaneers, Steve Young was traded to the San Francisco 49ers to serve as Joe Montana's backup. He would go on to make Montana expendable, earn league MVP honors in 1992 and 1994, earn MVP honors in Super Bowl XXIX, and retire with the highest passer rating among NFL quarterbacks with at least 1,500 passing attempts.

During his rookie season, Cadillac Williams rushed for 1,178 yards and six touchdowns. He was unable to match the success of his rookie campaign, however, and never again reached the 1,000 yard mark.

Barber finished his career with 47 interceptions and 28 sacks. He also holds the NFL record for most consecutive starts by a defensive back.

The Buccaneers intercepted Oakland QB Rich Gannon a Super Bowl record five times and returned three of them for touchdowns.

The Buccaneers gained infamy as the first team to play an entire 14-game season without winning or tying a single game (including five games where they never even scored). They did not score until their third game and did not score a touchdown until their fourth.

In 1988, Vinny threw 13 TDs and 35 interceptions. He cited "color blindness" as an excuse in a few post game interviews, claiming that the Buccaneers orange uniforms were too close to the white uniforms of the opposing teams. There was a billboard erected in Tampa, at the time, with a background in orange that stated, "Vinny thinks this is blue".